Belgian rider Wout van Aert won the hilly fourth stage of the 2022 Tour de France and extended his overall lead after attacking strongly on the day’s final climb on Tuesday.
The Belgian rider kept the leader’s yellow jersey for the Jumbo–Visma team after taking it for the first time on Saturday.
He also extended his lead in the green jersey contest for best sprinter. Van Aert shook up the peloton when he surged ahead up the last of the five climbs — a 900-meter ascent up Cote du Cap Blanc-Nez at a gradient of 7.5 % — about 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the end.
He said he felt an early attack was the best way to avoid a mass sprint at the line.
“I didn’t want to take the risk of losing anymore. It was quite obvious that we were trying something with the team,” he said. “I went full gas to see what would happen. I went all out.”
The 27-year-old Van Aert is considered one of the best multi-skilled riders in the world and is a former three-time cyclo-cross world champion and a one-day classics specialist. The Jumbo-Visma rider flapped his hands like a bird’s wings as he sat up on his bike.
He crossed the line eight seconds clear of countryman Jasper Philipsen of the Alpecin–Fenix team, with Jumbo-Visma teammate Christophe Laporte taking third place in a sprint finish.
Wednesday’s fifth stage is a flat stage for sprinters over 157 kilometers (97 miles) starting at Lille Metropole and going over some of the feared cobblestones that feature on the Paris-Roubaix one-day classic.
The first three stages of the 109th edition of the race took place in Denmark between July 1 and 3 before the race moved to France. It ends on July 24 in Paris.
Reporting by Associated Press.
Stay connected with us on social media platform for instant update click here to join our Twitter, & Facebook
We are now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@TechiUpdate) and stay updated with the latest Technology headlines.
For all the latest For Top Stories News Click Here
Denial of responsibility! Rapidtelecast.com is an automatic aggregator around the global media. All the content are available free on Internet. We have just arranged it in one platform for educational purpose only. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials on our website, please contact us by email – [email protected]. The content will be deleted within 24 hours.
